PRESS RELEASES

Hines' South Station Project the First Leed Pre-Certified Office Building in Boston

01/15/2007

(BOSTON, MA) – The Boston office of Hines, the international real estate firm, along with co-developer TUDC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Tufts University, announced today that the 49-story office tower in their planned mixed-use South Station project in downtown Boston is the first office building in the city to be pre-certified in the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Core and Shell Development program, which is sponsored by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), the nation’s leading authority for green building.

The one million-square-foot office tower was pre-certified at the Silver level based on the submission of documented plans to satisfy green performance and systems requirements. Upon building completion in 2010 and pending final documentation and review, the South Station office tower is poised to become Boston’s first LEED for Core and Shell-certified, high-rise office building.

Last month, Mayor Thomas M. Menino announced a new green building zoning article – an important move that would make Boston the first major city in the nation to require adherence to the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED Certified standard as part of the private development review process. The announcement came after his Green Building Task Force conducted a comprehensive exploration of green building’s full range of opportunities and challenges. In his effort to promote and encourage new green buildings and development, as well as “greening” Boston’s existing buildings, Menino said the city seeks to stimulate business growth and job creation for Boston.

The Boston Redevelopment Authority (BRA) authorized the Director to petition the Boston Zoning Commission to adopt Article 37 of the Boston Zoning Code on December 21, 2006. Boston’s new Green Building zoning provision, the above mentioned Article 37, will require that projects over 50,000 square feet meet a basic level of certification, known as the level “Certified,” according to the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Building rating system, as defined by the Boston Interagency Green Building Committee. Using the LEED for New Construction standard requires earning 26 points to meet the certified level. In addition to the LEED points, four additional points that reflect priorities of the City are being proposed in the areas of modern mobility (transportation), modern grid (energy), historic preservation and groundwater.

Hines Senior Vice President David Perry said, “This is a major milestone for us. We have worked diligently for many years to bring this project to fruition, and we are pleased to be doing so in a sustainable way. Energy efficiency and environmental sensitivity have been distinguishing features of our projects for decades, and we are excited about developing the first investment-grade, green office building in Boston.”

Rick Fedrizzi, USGBC president, CEO & founding chair said, “USGBC is thrilled for the Hines South Station project. This office tower is a first in Boston and will serve as an important example and inspiration for the city and the entire Boston community.”

“As the City prepares to amend its zoning code to require green building, I am pleased to see Hines taking the lead on this issue.”Mayor Menino said. “They are proving what we’ve been saying: green makes sense –it’s good for the environment and good for your wallet.”

In addition to the 49-story office tower, designed by Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects, the South Station project includes a 500,000-square-foot, nine-story office building, and a 13-story building containing a 200-room hotel and 150 residential units. Also included in the project are approximately $40 million dollars in privately funded, transportation-related improvements for South Station, including increasing the bus terminal’s capacity by approximately 40 percent.

In addition to capitalizing on the site’s proximity to the several alternative modes of public transportation served by South Station, sustainable design features of the project include energy efficient curtain wall and HVAC systems and extensive water conservation measures. The HVAC system has also been designed to achieve higher indoor air quality by providing a higher proportion of outside air than other Boston office buildings. The outside air will be purified by a highly efficient filtration system and controlled by a carbon dioxide monitoring system.

Hines has long been a leader in the development of green office buildings: 1180 Peachtree in Atlanta was the first high-rise office building in the world to receive LEED Silver pre-certification, while One South Dearborn in Chicago was the first high-rise office building in Illinois to receive LEED Silver pre-certification. The projects were subsequently certified Gold and Silver, respectively. 300 North LaSalle, Hines’ high-rise office building under development in Chicago, has also been pre-certified in the LEED for core and shell program. In addition, the firm’s speculative Tower 333 project in Bellevue, WA, was the first office project on the West Coast to receive LEED pre-certification, followed by 2211 Michelson in Orange County and La Jolla Commons in San Diego, both Hines projects currently under development.

Hines’ other developments in Boston include Five Hundred Boylston, the Philip Johnson-designed 700,000-square-foot office building completed in 1988. In 1991, the firm completed Two Twenty Two Berkeley, a 500,000-square-foot office project designed by Robert A.M. Stern Architects. The firm also owns and manages Wellesley Gateway, the headquarters of Harvard Pilgrim Health Care. Both Five Hundred Boylston and Two Twenty Two Berkeley have been recognized by the Environmental Protection Agency for their achievements in energy efficiency as recipients of the EPA’s ENERGY STAR label. In 2004, Hines became the only real estate company ever to have been recognized with the EPA’s ENERGY STAR Sustained Excellence Award.

The LEED Green Building Rating System is a voluntary, consensus-based national standard for developing high-performance, sustainable buildings. LEED for Core and Shell is a USGBC-sponsored program for designers, builders, developers and new building owners who address sustainable design for new core and shell construction. The USGBC is the nation's leading coalition of corporations, builders, universities, government agencies, and nonprofit organizations working together to promote buildings that are environmentally responsible, profitable and healthy places to live and work. For more information visit www.usgbc.org.

Hines is a privately owned real estate firm involved in real estate investment, development and property management worldwide. The Hines portfolio of projects underway, completed, acquired and managed for third parties includes 915 properties representing approximately 360 million square feet of office, residential, mixed-use, industrial, hotel, medical and sports facilities, as well as large, master-planned communities and land developments. With offices in 64 U.S. cities and 15 foreign countries, and controlled assets valued at approximately $13.5 billion, Hines is one of the largest real estate organizations in the world. Visit www.hines.com for more information.